# nCine/nCine

A cross-platform 2D game engine

Repository: https://github.com/nCine/nCine
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/ncine
Homepage: https://ncine.github.io/
Language: C++
License: MIT
License Family: permissive
Topics: cpp11, game-engine, game-engine-2d, game-development, opengl, real-time, rendering, imgui, lua, renderdoc, linux, windows, mingw, android, macos, ncine, emscripten, gamedev, cross-platform
Last push: 2026-08-24T13:51:00+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 67/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-02T17:46:02.011165+00:00)
- activity 99, release rhythm 8, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 2654, "days_push": 9, "days_rel": null, "gap_med": null, "n_releases_24m": 0}
- flags: none
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 1327, forks 81 (observed 2026-08-28T04:04:22.927782+00:00)

## What it is
nCine is an open-source, cross-platform 2D game engine written in C++11 with an emphasis on performance, optionally scriptable with Lua. It supports Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, and Emscripten/WebAssembly targets and is released under the MIT license.

## Use cases
- build a 2D game in C++
- cross-platform 2D game engine with OpenGL rendering
- script game logic with Lua
- compile a 2D game to WebAssembly with Emscripten
- performance-focused 2D rendering engine
- develop Android 2D games from C++

## When to choose
- you need a lightweight, performance-oriented 2D engine in C++
- you want Lua scripting on top of a native engine
- you need to target desktop, Android, and web from one codebase
- you prefer an MIT-licensed engine you can embed or modify

## When to avoid
- you need 3D rendering or a full editor like Unity/Godot
- you want a batteries-included engine with built-in physics, networking, and asset store
- you prefer higher-level languages like C# or GDScript
- you need a large ecosystem of tutorials and marketplace assets

## Facets
- artifact type: framework
- maturity: active
- function: game-engine, graphics, simulation
- domain: graphics, cross-platform
- platform: windows, cpp, lua, wasm, cross-platform
- tags: 2d-engine, opengl, imgui, renderdoc, emscripten, mingw, performance-focused, game-development, linux, macos, android

## Member repositories
- nCine/nCine (main) score 67

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:04:22.927782+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-30T04:46:18.386824+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/nCine/nCine (fetched 2026-08-28T04:04:22.927782+00:00, sha bf7a4efabe01)
  - homepage: https://ncine.github.io/ (fetched 2026-08-29T12:05:07.409580+00:00, sha 063250856a6a)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.